On this day today:
1926 - Marilyn Monroe, an icon of Hollywood's golden age, was born in Los Angeles, California. In addition to her notable contributions to cinema, Monroe was also a talented singer. Her musical career included recording several albums and performing songs such as "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" from the film "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". Her musical achievements left an indelible mark on global culture and continue to inspire artists worldwide.
1947 - Guitarist Ron Wood is born in London. He later becomes a member of The Faces and The Rolling Stones.
1956 - Doris Day signs a lucrative five-year recording contract with Columbia Records valued at $1 million.
1959 - Alan Wilder of Depeche Mode is born in London.
1967 - Roger Sanchez is born in Queens, New York. Known for his remixing skills, he will rise to fame with his dance remixes, including a Grammy Award-winning version of No Doubt's "Hella Good."
1968 - Jason Donovan is born in Malvern, Melbourne, Australia.
1968 - Simon & Garfunkel's "Mrs. Robinson" reaches #1 on the Hot 100 chart. The song, originally written for the film "The Graduate," is named after the character portrayed by Anne Bancroft.
1972 - The Eagles launched their inaugural studio album, marking an instant triumph with three top 40 singles: 'Take It Easy', 'Witchy Woman', and 'Peaceful Easy Feeling'.
1974 - Alanis Morissette is born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
1976 - The Runaways release their eponymous debut album.
1977 - Billy Joel ends a US tour with a concert at Carnegie Hall.
1981 - The inaugural issue of the heavy metal magazine Kerrang is released as a special pull-out by the UK weekly music paper Sounds, featuring AC/DC on the front cover.
1985 - A-ha launches their debut album, "Hunting High and Low," which includes their breakthrough hit, "Take On Me."
1985 - Sting ventures into solo territory with his debut album, The Dream of the Blue Turtles. Among its tracks is "Moon Over Bourbon Street," inspired by the novel Interview With The Vampire, and "Russians," which offers a Cold War perspective from the USSR's point of view.
1990 - Mariah Carey makes her national TV debut with a performance of "Vision Of Love" on The Arsenio Hall Show. The song quickly enters the Hot 100 and reaches #1 just eight weeks later.
1991 - Sting makes an appearance on the inaugural broadcast of a new Soviet TV rock show titled Rock Steady.
1991 - Seal's eponymous debut album begins its three-week reign at the top of the UK albums chart.
1999 - Blink-182 turns youthful antics into a commercial triumph with their third album, Enema Of The State, propelling the pop-punk trio to fame with chart-topping singles like "What's My Age Again?" and "All The Small Things."
1999 - Dido's debut album, "No Angel," hits American shelves. Its popularity surges towards the end of 2000, notably after Eminem samples her track "Thank You" for his hit song "Stan."
2000 - The film "Honest," featuring three members of the group All Saints, faces a setback as cinemas pull it due to poor box office performance.
2001 - "Moulin Rouge!", directed by Baz Luhrmann, debuts in theaters, featuring a plethora of music, including covers of "Nature Boy" by David Bowie, "Diamond Dogs" by Beck, and "Lady Marmalade" by Missy Elliott, Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya, and Pink, which rises to #1 on the American charts. Additionally, Kylie Minogue makes a cameo appearance as the Green Fairy.
2002 - Eminem, yet to claim a chart-topping hit in the US, achieves his third UK #1 single with "Without Me," a track where he takes aim at various targets including Chris Kirkpatrick, Limp Bizkit, and Moby.
2005 - Crazy Frog's "Axel F" hits #1 on the UK singles chart.
2006 - As the UK Albums chart celebrates its 50th anniversary, a survey conducted by the book of British Hit Singles and Albums and NME crowns Definitely Maybe by Oasis as the greatest album of all time.
2008 - A fire at Universal Studios Hollywood devastates the music industry, destroying thousands of master tapes held by Universal Music Group. Recordings by iconic artists like Joni Mitchell, Elton John, B.B. King, Neil Diamond, Nirvana, and Eminem are among those lost. The full extent of the damage remains undisclosed for years.
2016 - Ed Sheeran was revealed as the most-played pop act in the UK in 2015.
2017 - Thanks to Eminem's song, the term "stan" makes its way into the Oxford American Dictionary, now defined as "an overzealous or obsessive fan of a particular celebrity."
2019 - Tyler, The Creator's unconventional album Igor makes a surprising debut at #1 on the US charts, surpassing the more expected favorite, DJ Khaled's Father Of Asahd. Despite the odds, Igor's unique style resonates with listeners and earns Tyler the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album.
